Lazy sundae
by coffee dazed
Summary: Updated fluffy Reela fic. icecream, glitter, and poker with our favourite roomies. Enjoy! their lazy day continues...oh and the glitter makes a comeback
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own ER or any characters by Charles Schultz

Neela sprang out of bed after having a fabulous night's sleep, she had been looking forward to this for the last month – a whole entire Sunday off, the last time that had happened was, well, she couldn't remember that far back. She had practically skipped home when her Saturday evening shift finished and she stocked up on supplies just so she didn't need to leave the apartment the next day. Beer – check; ice-cream – check ; crisps and all things for vegging out – check!

The apartment had been empty when she arrived home, Ray was at another of his gigs and if it followed the usual routine, he wouldn't appear until the next night with the tired and slightly frazzled appearance of someone who hadn't had much rest, especially if he had had to work in the morning. She recalled one her friend's oft-used sayings, 'too much bed, not enough sleep'. Neela smiled wryly and gave herself a small shake, she wasn't going to let her mind go down that road again.

Neela dragged her blanket off her bed and plonked it onto the sofa before rooting through the fridge and freezer to make a childhood favourite- knickerbocker glory. She thought it a perfectly reasonable brunch food. After all, it had all her calcium needs and glace cherries and tinned fruit cocktail were still fruit and pondering the raspberry sauce, she came to the (weak) conclusion that it also had some slight degree of nutritional value. She popped the taped editions of Celebrity Poker into the machine and settled into her blanket. Today was the day she would go from serious surgical resident to poker player extraordinaire! Well, at least for one day. As the Vegas-style music began, she plunged her sundae spoon into the mountain of dairy deliciousness…and heard the front door open. Gaah!

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Ray put his key in the lock and tried to shush the glitter-covered blonde who giggled behind him. Thank fate that his rota had let him off this weekend, he didn't think he could cope with gigging and working the next day for much longer. He was definitely still a tad drunk. Grinning more to himself than anyone else, he pushed the door open to be met by the strains of Celebrity Poker and his room-mate's angry frown which only grew deeper when the blonde (what was her name again?) pushed him further forward so that they were now both inside the apartment.

What the…? He groaned inwardly. How could he forget? The calendar had been circled with red marker for as long as he could remember and she nearly danced a jig every time she looked at it and now he had ruined it. Better than any coffee, Ray sobered immediately and more or less shoved the groupie back into the hallway and closed the door her protestations but not before she left behind a gust of shimmering silver.

"Neela, I'm so sorry, I totally…," Ray had turned back to his roomie to find her advancing towards him, waving the long spoon threateningly at him, a murderous expression on her face which was only tempered by the sight of her baggy sweater and PJ bottoms with a blanket being trailed over her shoulder. He had to keep from smiling, she reminded him of that "Peanuts" kid, Linus?. He didn't think Schultz would ever had killed off Snoopy by use of dessert cutlery.

"Neela, look, I'll be quiet, let you have your lazy day in peace. C'mon, I even chucked out…um, …I didn't even bring anyone back." He smiled his quirky smile and used his secret weapon, "I taped a new episode of poker for you before I went out yesterday."

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She had been annoyed when she heard his voice but she hadn't really got angry until she heard the giggling. Why was she so upset? It wasn't like he had never brought anyone back before. No, if she was truthful, it was partly jealousy and had been for sometime now but really, it was his thoughtlessness. Short of living on another planet, he couldn't have failed to miss the fact she had been planning this day off for ages and a small part of her added, _"If he cared just a little bit, he would have remembered."_

Nonetheless, she was surprised by the not-so-gentle push he gave his latest conquest and the apology that was written all over his face. Neela was still trying to decide whether or not to perform a non-medical procedure with her spoon when he looked at her with those twinkling green eyes and said the magic words.

"Humph, well, as long as you _do_ stay quiet and clean that glitter off our door, I won't have to do anything permanent to you." Neela moved back to the sofa with as much dignity as her slipper socks and trailing blanket would allow her. Pressing the 'Play' button, she watched the tall, lean frame of her room-mate fetch a soapy cloth from the kitchen sink and quickly wipe the sparkly flecks off the door but that course of action had the unfortunate effect of making the now-damp glitter stick to everything it came into contact with. Neela hid her growing smile behind another spoonful of sundae as Ray unknowingly transformed from punk-rocker to glam-rocker but was caused her to smile more was that he had taped her current favourite show without her asking.

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"_Our door.. "_ Ray hadn't misheard. It was like a big hug to him and OK, so it wasn't exactly a declaration of love but it did mean that she considered the apartment home and consequently, he was part of that home. He finished cleaning the door and scooted to the shower where he looked into the mirror. Ah, jeez, Marc Bolan had nothing on him just now, thank goodness for hot running water and shower gel!

Now cleansed and dressed in similar attire to Neela's, he grabbed a glass of juice before sitting down next to her and finding a dish of ice-cream being thrust under his nose and the sound of her determined voice saying,

"If you're going to have a lazy day too, you have to do it properly."

"Wow, I didn't realise that relaxation was such hard work." Ice-cream sundaes had never really been his thing but he was more than flattered that she had got up to make one especially for him and the last thing he was going to do was reject it. Ray raised his own spoon in salute and was pleasantly surprised when Neela clinked it with her own and moved her blanket so that it covered Ray too. Sitting shoulder to shoulder, Neela quietly enjoyed breathing in the scent of Ray's freshly showered body before entering into their ongoing debate of who their favourite players were and who deserved to win.

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**Please review, thx**


	2. Chapter 2

**Note:** Thanks to all for your reviews, it has given me more ideas for reela's day off.

Hope u were also inspired to eat ice-cream, on a quick recipe note, try making quick lemon meringue ice cream – ready made custard, mix with double cream, zest and juice of 1 lemon, lemon curd and broken-up meringue. Churn in machine or put in freezer tub and whisk to break up ice crystals after about 40 mins. Repeat another 2 or 3 times then finish freezing and dig in!

"Aaargh…I think I'm gonna vom…"

4 hours of celebrity poker, the rest of the tubs of Haagen-Dazs, a 6-pack of beer and the family size bag of crisps later and Neela was now found to be hanging halfway off the sofa, head to the floor and legs propped on the sofa back. Ray wasn't in a much better condition as he adopted the pose favoured by everyone who has taken stuffing their faces as a personal challenge - their own junk food Everest, he had just gotten comfy in the sitting-on-the-floor-leaning-against-the sofa position with his head back on the seat.

Neela fixed him with eyes that were bright from too much sugar.

"I blame you for this, that's one 'Bhudda Belly' competition too far!" Despite her accusing tone, they both chuckled at the events of the last few hours where merry banter over the state of the poker playing had steadily degenerated in direct proportion to the amount of food and drink consumed. All of this had culminated in Ray's declaration, "Bhudda Belly!"

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He grinned mischieviously at her while she narrowed her eyes at him.

"You what?"

"Bhudda Belly, " he repeated. "My college buddies and I used to play this all the time, everyone munches away on the communal snack collection and when either everything's been eaten or everyone has admitted defeat, we compare stomachs to see whose is the biggest."

She raised one perfectly arched eyebrow and enquired fruitily,

"And I take it that size did matter, then?"

Ray replied with a bemused look as Neela continued, "and what does the winner get? Gout?"

"Oh ha ha, suddenly everyone's a comedian " he dead-panned. "It was just an idea."

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Neela felt bad about teasing Ray, he had been very sweet since the initial hiccup that morning and it had been so lovely to be in his company where they hadn't needed to talk all the time, that just being in each other's company was enough. So different from Michael where they had had comparatively little time with each other and so she had thought it so important that they talked about everything and still there had never been the sense of a complete conversation.

She gave Ray a sidelong glance, gave her currently-flat stomach an experimental prod and sighed dramatically, "OK. Hit me with the munchies then and I'll wager you one chick-flick against one horror-flick that I'll win."

Dark brown eyes were met by gold-flecked green ones that lit up as he realised that the game was on!

"I'll see your flick and raise you a bottle of tequila." And so the competitiveness continued until they finally settled on the winner choosing the movies for the rest of the month and the loser supplying the booze. Let the eating begin!

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Ray felt the sharp stab of disappointment when Neela had joked about that much-loved college game that usually took place when everyone was already a bit worse for wear. He didn't think the suggestion had been _that_ bad but then he heard her assent and the disappoint was replaced by delight. Talk about having it bad. For a fleeting moment, he wondered how he had ended up in this position, going from rebel-rocker doctor to responsible R3 with a hint of rocker in just a few short years. The answer, he knew, was sitting beside him pouring the rest of the snacks into bowls and dishes, wavy black hair tucked behind her ears as she concentrated on the gastronomic challenge ahead of them. Ray was sure that she would freak out if she had the slightest hint of how he felt about her, then there was Micha…

"Right, it's done, beer and junk food are good to go. So what's the rules? Is it a free-for-all or is it a steady chomping motion? Do we take the same amount…"

"Whoa, there," Ray cut her off. Some things still stayed the same. She had been such a brainiac when they first met but they had helped to change each other, he passed on his more relaxed attitude and she reciprocated by affording him greater professionalism. "Just start eating, ok, and stop when you cant eat anymore. Simple."

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As with most competitions, there was much enthusiasm to begin with, junk food by its very nature was tasty and beer was good for washing anything down but a couple of hours of steady crunching and gulping had definitely taken its toll. Couple of hours. What had she been thinking? Neela could have kicked herself for buying so much at the store last night, this could have been finished ages ago and her stomach walls wouldn't be screaming for mercy! They eyed each other with gimlet determination, daring the other to quit first, which of course neither of them did until at last, all the bowls, tubs and cans were empty.

"Oh God, lets just do this before my tummy explodes," said Neela plaintively.

They sat side by side and pulled their sweatshirts up to expose uncomfortably bloated bellies with skin stretched taut.

"Hmmm…" mused Ray, "I'm not sure. Quit pushing your stomach out, that's cheating."

"Ray, " Neela's eyes took on a familiar deadly look, "I can barely breathe let alone push my stomach out. Anyhow, I think I've won, there's definitely more roundness." She continued to study their respective bellies and let her eyes travel over her room-mate's bare skin. _"Shame, there's no more tattoos. He suits them."_ Yikes! Now why was she thinking like that? She prayed that the redness she was feeling spread up her neck wouldn't reach her face.

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"Ray." The sound of his name pulled him out of his reverie. Was it wrong to wish her top had ridden up just a little higher to reveal a shade more of her smooth, soft skin? "Yes, of course it is." He answered himself out loud before he realised what he had done. Luckily for him, it seemed to have been the answer Neela was wanting and in any case, Ray really didn't mind her winning the bet, it was worth it just for the big smile she was wearing as she looked at him. He thought she was looking a bit flushed, but well, extreme over-eating could do that to a person.

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Ray reached over to the table, lifted an empty bowl and passed it to Neela.

"Here, use this, don't wanting to be cleaning your chunks off the carpet, ha ha."

Neela deemed his words unfit for a reply but she took the bowl anyway, she didn't want to take any chances as she let herself float with the light headed-ness that began to take over. She closed her eyes and started to drift before being roused by the feeling of her roomie's hands manoeuvring her back to a sitting position. _Her roomie, her colleague, her best friend, her..._

"C'mon tough guy, let's get you upright, it's not good for all that blood to rush to your head. Ah, these amateurs."

Ray couldn't help but laugh as Neela blinked hazily at him while he tucked her blanket around her. He made to get up and start tidying while he left her to sleep it off but was surprised to find he couldn't move. Neela's hand held onto his arm and tugged him back onto the sofa next to her.

"I may be an amateur but I know when I've won a bet. Anyway, this is our joint lazy day so we can tidy later. Besides, "she smiled sleepily, "you make a good pillow." Ray smiled softly as she lay her head against him and even more so when he moved his arm around to get more comfortable and he felt her snuggle into his shoulder.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: **I don't own ER, etc, or intend any infringement on characters (1) by J.M. Barrie

**Note:** this isn't the strongest chapter by any means but needed an easy out to get the roomies to the next stage of where I want them to be for the next chapter. Apologies in advance. Oh, should have mentioned at the start that this fic takes place after Neela gets together with Gallant but before they are married. It's my "get out of jail free" card to avoid any moral dilemmas of Neela cheating on her husband.

"Urghh…" Ray let out a low groan as he tried to straighten himself out of the half-twisted slump that he had ended up falling asleep in. He frowned as he rubbed the nape of his neck, he knew his spine was going to pay him back for that mistreatment tomorrow. Taking care not to disturb the blanketed heap next to him, Ray ran long fingers through his half-spikey, half-flattened bed hair as he squinted at the wall clock. 5 in the afternoon, at least the whole day hadn't been slept away and the summer sun was still shining brightly.

Ray looked down as a muffled snort/cough emanated from somewhere near his elbow and he allowed himself a smile as he recalled how easily they had slumped together before falling asleep. He had half-expected Neela to shrug him away when he rested his arm around her shoulder but if anything, she had simply nestled closer to him.

He watched in amusement then laughed as the blanket stirred like a strange quilted volcano that erupted with Neela's head appearing over the top, strands of night-black hair sticking up like she was auditioning for a role as a scarecrow. Even though Ray knew that this was not one of his roomie's more flattering looks, it was a vision he would be more than happy to wake up with each morning.

Blinking bleary-eyed at him, her voice croaked out one word.

"Water."

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Neela ran her tongue over dry lips and immediately regretted it. The high salt and sugar intake combined with alcohol had left her mouth feeling as though she had swallowed a bucket of sand and then covered her tongue with cotton wool. She swallowed, coughing at the parched-ness of her throat, grateful that Ray had heard her plea and was returning with a pint glass of water.

Neela studied him enviously – it wasn't fair that he looked so well when she felt like crap. _Look at him! There's definitely a spring in his step._ Not only was her stomach still making itself known by gurgling ominously, her brain was feeling more than a little fuzzy too. Any spring that might have been in her step had relocated itself to the rolling motion that was taking place in her gut.

"Here, I put in a couple of slices of ginger – it's supposed to help nausea." Ray placed the glass into Neela's outstretched hands, their fingertips touching briefly. She thanked him with her eyes as she gulped the contents as if it were going out of fashion, draining every last drop in 5 seconds flat.

"Impressive, "he said admiringly, "that must be a new world record."

Opening her mouth to retort, what actually came out was, "B-E-E-L-L-L-C-H-H-H." Neela clapped her hand to her mouth, mortified.

"I take that back. _That_ was impressive!"

"I'm so sorry, that was so gross." Neela couldn't believe what she had just done. In all the time that they had lived together, sure they had had the odd burping contest but she had never emitted such a loud, protracted and, yes, smelly belch. At least, not in front of him. _"He must think I'm a complete slob." _ She wanted to curl back under her blanket. _"Bet none of those groupies ever did anything to gross him out."_

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Ray had been transfixed by the sight of her smooth throat moving up and down as she glugged the water but the transfixion ended abruptly by the huge belch which had followed. There was no way that could ever be deemed sexy but he loved that Neela wasn't one of those girls who acted as if normal bodily functions didn't apply to them.

Noticing that Neela's usually glowing skin had taken on a drawn pallor, Ray decided that fresh air was the way forward.

"Right. The sun's still shining, we'll get you out and feeling better in no time."

"Are you off your head?!" The look of disbelief on her face was almost comical.

"It'll be fine, " he said soothingly before adding, "it's just what the doctor ordered."

Neela groaned. "That's terrible." However, Ray didn't miss the small smile playing at the corners of her mouth before replying.

"The old ones are the best ones."

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Neela let herself be pulled up from the sofa and guided in the direction of her room. Even if she had protested, she had the impression that resistance was futile and if truth be told, she wasn't certain that she wanted to resist anyway.

Pulling on a loose green summer dress that wouldn't restrict her delicate stomach, she slipped on her battered flat pumps that should have been thrown out long ago if they weren't so comfy. After dragging a brush through her hair, Neela grabbed her bag and stepped out to where Ray was already waiting by the front door.

He, too, had changed and she couldn't help but notice how his grey T-shirt skimmed and clung to his leanly muscled torso in just the right places. As he turned towards her, she saw his back catch the sunlight.

"Hold still a second." Neela went for a closer look and chuckled.

"What is it?" He tried to peer over his shoulder.

"It would seem that you are to be our very own ER Tinkerbell for a while longer. That glitter is _everywhere_."

Using her hands, Neela brushed the silver specks from his back, stretching up to reach properly. She knew she was letting her hands play over his shoulders longer than was necessary but she couldn't help herself. _Any legitimate reason…_

"Uh…Neela, is it off yet?" Ray was loathe to end the welcome sensation of her light touch but he wasn't sure what to do.

"Hmmm?...Oh. Yeah, um, yeah it is." She cleared her throat and walked around him to open the door when she heard him guffaw.

Looking into his face, she felt a sinking feeling. "Oh no, don't tell me!"

"Yup."

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Ray sent up his eternal thanks to whichever power had provided this rare and long-desired opportunity. He took a tissue and began wiping Neela's face gently to remove the sparkles which had come off him onto her. After a few minutes, he spoke in a serious tone.

"Dr. Rasgotra, I'm sorry to inform you that you also have 'Tinkerbell Syndrome' but the long-term prognosis is good. The effects of Sparkus Glitterii is not believed to be permanent."

A few seconds passed as they searched each other's eyes before they burst out laughing at the same time, enjoying the shared humour of the situation.

Still laughing, Neela finished opening the door and pulled Ray out after her, "Let's go."


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:** I don't own ER (but I know what I would do if I did :p) or, again, anything by Schultz

**Note:** Big thanks for everybody's continued enjoyment of reela's lazy day. Hope it continues to entertain.

"Woo hoo! Did you see that? Did ya?" Ray did a small victory dance not unlike Snoopy's as the last metal duck in the line was felled by the toy shotgun that he wielded. He knew that he was probably a tad over-excited but the simple joy of winning a fairground game had unleashed his childish side and he was still grinning inanely as he went to choose his prize. Moreover, it was a question of pride, after all, he was all too aware that _she was watching_ and he hadn't wanted to make an idiot of himself.

As he looked over the assembly of cuddly toys, he tried to think of which one Neela would like best. After a few minutes, he plumped for the big floppy monkey with google eyes and a lopsided smile that could only be described as cute. He smiled apologetically at the stall attendant who had started sighing impatiently at him, anybody would think he was looking at diamonds.

Returning to where Neela had stood watching him play, Ray presented the monkey to her with a flourish, "For the fair maiden." He hoped that he had said it jokingly enough, the last thing he wanted to do was scare her away. Ray needn't have worried because Neela fully entered into the spirit of things and she, in turn, curtseyed and replied with, "Thank you, kind sir."

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Neela clapped as Ray hit the last target and danced about. There had been no plan when they had ventured out into the daylight, only to try and revive themselves when after a few blocks, they reached the park and saw that a funfair was open. Amazingly, to Ray anyway, it had been her who decided to go and revisit the games that were such a source of endless fun when she was 10 years old.

They had wandered around for a short while, trying to decide which amusements to go to and needless to say, the Ferris Wheel, Dodgems and Waltzers were out. Instead, they attempted 'skill' games, the coconut shy and the like and although it was common knowledge that these games were always set up in favour of the fairground rather than the punter, Ray and Neela still commiserated each other when they failed to win.

Eventually, after spending virtually all the loose change that they had brought with them, Ray had pleaded with Neela for him to have a go on the 'shooting gallery' before leaving and because it was him, she relented.

"_My own knight in shining armour,"_ thought Neela as she accepted the goofy-looking monkey that she knew she would keep on the other side of her bed when they got home. She was glad that he couldn't see behind her sunglasses or he would see all the emotions that she felt for him and then run a mile! Imagine falling for your room-mate, _a rookie mistake_. She unconsciously clicked her tongue at the thought and was startled when Ray looked quizzically at her.

"Are you alright?"

"Um, yeah, I just…ah...had something stuck in my teeth." _Great, now he thinks I've no manners and have poor hygiene. You're a real charmer, Neela._

As much to change the subject as anything else, Neela looked up at Ray, "Let's get a coffee. I don't think it'll be long until the fair closes anyway."

"Good plan," he agreed, "there's that little place around the corner." He could have melted right there when Neela linked her arm through his and set off determinedly in the direction of the café.

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"_Stop it," _ he told himself, _"friends do that all the time, it doesn't mean anything."_ Having said that, he couldn't help feeling when a warm glow when an old couple who were holding hands as they strolled down the street towards them smiled a greeting at them as if to acknowledge young love.

Ray was disappointed when she slipped her arm away from him when they reached the café but he knew that there was no way they would get through the doors unless he wanted to crash through the glass of the side that remained locked.

He studied the little frown that appeared between Neela's brows which told him that she was trying hard to decide what she wanted to order and so didn't hear the words that came from her lips.

"Yoo hoo…Ray?...Ray!" she barked this last word. "What do you want? My treat."

"Eh, right. I'll take a tall latte."

Neela leaned forward to give the attendant her order, "Tall latte and iced green tea, thanks."

It was too nice to sit inside so they stepped back into the early evening sun and made their leisurely way back to the apartment.

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Neela sipped meditatively on her tea, her day off would have been great had it gone the way she had planned but with the unexpected help of her roomie, it had been ten times better. She let him walk just a little way in front of her so that she could just watch him. His cool, almost idle swagger, no, not swagger, more of a lope, or perhaps it was…_Arggghhh!_ She had to stop doing that, it was bordering on crazy. She felt herself blush slightly when he turned back to her.

"C'mon, slowcoach, what's keeping you?" _Hah, if only he knew._

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He felt it unfair that they had reached their apartment so quickly, he didn't want this day, their day, to end. Ray thought about how differently it could have turned out, hot sex with a good-looking but otherwise uninteresting blonde or a comparatively tame day of just hanging out with his roomie? No contest, Celebrity Poker and the funfair would win every time.

Ray watched the petite form he adored so much move the cuddly toy she had been carrying under her arm and prop it in a sitting position on the kitchen worktop before kicking her off her shoes.

"What you gonna call him?" he asked.

Neela took a moment before answering. "Monkey, just Monkey." When Ray just raised an eyebrow at her, "It suits him," she defended.

"Hey, I didn't say a thing," he protested.

"You didn't need to." Neela's eyes met his and for a moment, he thought he could quite happily drown into those dark pools. "Thank you, Ray, that was the best ever."


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: **I don't own ER, etc, etc

**Note:** Again, huge thanks to everyone who has reviewed and enjoyed the story so far. This chapter begins the winding up of reela's day off. Also, I won't be able to update for a bit after this as am off on hols to France's Champagne region (I had to share as am very excited, have always wanted to go there. Of course, am going there for the culture too! lol :p) tho I might get some inspiration whilst away.

Shuffling his feet a little, Ray felt suddenly shy at Neela's compliment. "Hey, it was nothing, anything for my roomie. Besides, I had a blast too."

There was a brief, almost awkward silence that followed which was interrupted by the ringing of the telephone. _Saved by the bell!__Or maybe not? _Ray started towards the sofa as Neela answered but he stopped in his tracks when he heard her speak.

"Michael, how are you?"

The quiet elation he had been feeling evaporated like light mist in hot sun. Broad shoulders now slumped, he made his way to his room where he picked up his guitar and sank onto the bed. As he picked at random chords, he tried hard not to listen in on the call but he couldn't help but pick up the odd word or phrase that drifted from the living room on Neela's soft tones. _Hope is a cruel, cruel mistress._ The words rolled around in his head until he started to hum to himself and decided that it would be a good title for a song. These days, it seemed that all of his new compositions revolved around one thing, the subject of which was in the next room speaking to her boyfriend.

"_Get over it, man. Call the guys, go out and party, go home with a hot girl."_ Ray shook his head, the advice he tried to give himself was no good. 6 months ago, he wouldn't have needed telling twice but now, the only thing he wanted was like his personal Holy Grail – always wanting to grasp it but knowing deep down that it was unattainable.

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_Michael!_ Neela knew she should be overjoyed to hear from him but a small part of her resented that he had interrupted the time she was having with Ray. She quickly brushed away the feeling, telling herself off for being so selfish.

"It's good to hear you. What have you been doing?" As she listened to Michael's voice retelling anecdotes and events, Neela wondered why she wasn't as excited as she should have been especially since they had had no contact for over two weeks. He was nice. He was kind and thoughtful. He reminded her of her eldest brother…_NOOOOO!!!__And there it was._ There was a long pause on the line before she realised that it was her turn to speak.

"Oh, here? Yeah, County's still the same. Weaver's efficient as ever and Gregg's still trying to chat up the ladies and busy as always. Uh huh…yup…I remember that, it was funny…no they left a couple of months ago…He's still there…" Neela tried to keep things light, tried to recall answers as Michael asked after various people he had known during his time at County until…

"What? I mean yeah, no Ray's fine, the apartment's working out fine. No, no, it doesn't clash…no, it's not too noisy…huh? I know what I said but that was ages ago…honestly, it's great." Why was her heart racing as she answered the enquiries about Ray and her living arrangements? There was nothing to hide, nothing had happened. So why did she feel that she needed to not tell Michael about all the stupid things that her and Ray did; the horror films? the Celebrity Poker evenings? Bhudda Belly, even though she knew it would have made Michael laugh and say he wished that he had been there. Neela knew the reason why.

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Ray's ears pricked up when he heard his name mentioned. What _was_ it that she had said? He didn't really need to ask, he could have probably guessed since the early roomie days had been less than serene with their constant bickering about noise, mess, sleep, the lack of and band practice. Now he supposed that Gallant would be returning in the not-too-distant future and he would need to advertise for a new roomie. He let the rest of the conversation fade into an indistinct buzz as he gloomily pondered this prospect.

Finally, after what seemed like an age, Ray heard the phone hang up and…nothing. He let a couple of minutes slip by before casually strolling out of his room and sensing that the lightness of the day had ebbed and was now replaced a quiet sombreness. Neela was sitting on the sofa, just sort of staring into space, only acknowledging his presence when he asked, "So how's Michael?"

"He's fine. Enjoying himself just now. He and his friends had a free afternoon so they got to have a game of football."

"O-kaay. That's good." Ray wasn't sure what was going on and Neela wasn't giving away much. He sat down next to her and mentally braced himself before asking, "What's wrong?"

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_Good question.__What _was _wrong?_ Neela hadn't expected to feel like this after coming off the phone to Michael and she certainly hadn't expected to feel the sense of relief that was washing over her at this present moment. The next question she needed to answer was…_Now what do I do?_

She started chewing her lower lip, something she hadn't done since she was a child. It was a sure sign that she was, as her afore-mentioned friend said, 'all discombobulated'. The puzzle that was troubling her had now presented himself at her side and there were no solutions forthcoming. Although they were never best buddies, they had got on well at County and asked after each other through her. Now, her dilemma was to try and find out what her once–irritating room-mate would do if she told him that she thought she was more than a little fond of him.

"Nothing, not really." _What else to say? There was nothing else for it.At worst, she would just need to move back to Abby's until she found a new place to stay._

Neela took a deep breath and looked Ray square in the eye. "Michael's being reposted. To Europe this time, Italy I think."

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_Great, she's going to tell me that she's going to take time off to go see him..._ Ray felt his mood get distinctly darker.

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"It'll be good for him, " she continued, "much less stressful, no bombings and things." A pause. "And, uh, we've broken up…"

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…_they'll have babies and call them 'Luciano' and '__Alessandro' or something and…HUH??!..._

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"…it's ok though. I think it is," she frowned before carrying on, "it will be. I mean, we are, were very happy. It's just…just…I guess we realised we were better as friends than anything else." Neela was half talking to herself, half talking to Ray.

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_Poor Michael…_

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"Anyway, we knew we had been drifting a bit for some time and he told me that he had kind of met someone else."

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_Oh. Not-so-poor Michael, then…_

_Poor Neela…_

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"It's alright. I'm pleased for him 'cos she sounds right for him and…"

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_Hmm…not-so-poor Neela either…_

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"…I think I might have met someone else."

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_WHH-AAAA-TTT???? Help! … Cardiac arrest! ... Crash cart, STAT!_

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"He's funny, sweet, makes me laugh, makes me mad sometimes, but makes me happy all the time…"

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_I hate this guy…_

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"…he's smart and talented and, " Neela gave a bashful smile.

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_HATE him…_

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"very good-looking too."

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_Did I mention that I hated this guy?..._ Ray said nothing. He could see that Neela was waiting on a reply. _What does she want? A speech on how happy I am that yet again, I'm left waiting around while she sails into the sunset with someone else?_

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Realising that she wasn't going to get any reply from Ray, she gently took his hand.

"Ray, " her voice was soft, barely a whisper. She didn't need to speak much louder, Ray was so quiet, she could have heard a pin drop. "I'm talking about you." Her voice shook slightly with this last statement, eyes betraying her nervous-ness.

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_WHH-AAAA-TTT?? _Ray's eyes widened as his brain absorbed this information.

_I LOVE this guy!!!_

**Note:** Ok, am really, really sorry. Ten thousand pardons to everyone! As I finished writing this, I realised that this was the penultimate chapter and therefore, it's at least a week before you will get the concluding chapter. I will write it as soon as I get back.

To appease everyone, another recipe; Whole Orange Cake. Pierce orange with knife then boil whole in water for approx 20-25 mins until soft and sort of mushy. When its ready, chop into chunks, remove pips then blitz in processor until pureed. Cream 175g softened butter with 130g-150g caster sugar (depends how sweet u like ur cakes) until pale and fluffy. Mix in 2 beaten eggs a little at a time until combined. Then mix in 200g self-raising flour a little at a time until combined. Mix in orange puree until thoroughly combined. Pour into lined and greased baking tin and bake in pre-heated oven 160°C or Gas 4 for approx 40 mins, check on it after 30 mins. If skewer or knife inserted into middle of cake comes out clean, it's ready. Leave in tin until cool enough to handle then turn out and finish completely cooling on wire rack. Then decorate with icing or anything else if u want. Or leave it as it is.


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: **I don't own ER, etc, etc

**Note:** Sorry about the delay in update, just got back from holiday which was fab, everybody must try and go to Reims if they can. Ahh, have got the holiday blues bad, I would go back in a second. Anyway, I digress. Here is what I am thinking will be the final chapter but there may be a chance that as I write, there will be more ideas. Will let you know at the end. Hope this chapter entertains you as much as the previous ones did. Because of the nature of this chapter, I must warn everybody of major storms of unashamed slushiness with possible showers of clichés.

Neela clamped her mouth shut as soon as she had said the words. Certainly, she wanted to get his reaction but at the moment, she just wanted to know that Ray was still feeling well. His eyes had taken on a glazed appearance looking almost concussed and there was definitely no sign of him saying anything any time soon.

_Great job, Neela, you've scared him so badly that he's become a vegetable._ Neela bit back the sarcastic thought, the last thing she needed to do now was to say anything else that would confirm any suspicions Ray might have had about her sanity.

She looked down at her right hand, so small compared to that of Ray's which was still being held in hers. Not letting go, she gently rubbed the back of his with her left whilst softly saying his name in an effort to bring him back to the here and now.

"Ray… Ray… come on, speak to me. Earth to Ray?" Neela narrowed her eyes at the lack of response. This would take something serious to rouse him.

"Ray, if you don't say something in the next 5 seconds, I'm going to cut all the strings on your beloved guitar!"

Neela smiled in spite of herself at the almost magical reaction.

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Ray had felt like his brain had turned into a foggy mush and although he could see Neela's lips moving, his ears didn't seem to be able to hear anything. That was, until the threat of harm to the one object nearly as precious to him as she was.

He felt his head clear and met Neela's worried gaze with a look of panic.

"Noo, I'll be tidier and clean up and everything and…" The sentence had rushed out, the words familiar as they were the ones he usually used when Neela threatened him when the messiness of the apartment got out of hand.

"Oh." Ray coughed, sheepish, and saw dark eyes soften as the red blush moved over his face when he realised what had happened. _It's now or never and _she_ said it first! But what if I've built it up too much and it goes wrong? No, it won't go wrong, this is what you've been waiting for. What to do? Oh, for chrissakes! Never mind what she thinks about me, _I_ think that me is schizo!_

"You mean that? I'm not dreaming?" Ray's voice was as soft as Neela's had been, afraid that any unnecessary noise would break the spell and he was more than aware that the touch of her fingertips moving back and forth against his hand was sending thrills of electricity through his body. He lifted his free hand to her brush her cheek, as if to reassure himself that the Neela next to him was the real one and not a fantasy.

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"It's not a dream."

_Typical, I practically declare my love and…nothing. Threaten his guitar and he's all action!_ Despite the situation, Neela couldn't help but laugh to herself. She closed her eyes as his hand reached her face and all the reasons why she loved him made themselves clear and present. She could have reeled off each of them but all it came down to was that he was her…everything.

When Neela opened her eyes, she was surprised at the depth of tenderness in his gaze and she was taken aback by how strongly she wanted nothing more than to forever be the reason for that gaze. _ No more running, no more hiding. This is what I want. He is what I want. He is…home._

She moved her face closer to his, tilting up to his, centimetre by centimetre, no words were needed for what she was about to do. With ever-so-slightly parted lips, she made contact with Ray's.

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_She's gonna kiss me! _ As if pulled by a magnet, Ray felt himself lean in to Neela and he wasn't prepared for how much he wanted her when her lips met his and he tasted the sweet warmth of her mouth. _This totally beats shooting metal ducks!_

After what seemed to be an age where time stood still and the whole world was just he in Neela's arms and Neela in his arms, the kiss ended and they studied each other in silence but with great big grins on their faces.

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Minutes passed before Ray spoke first.

"Hope you had a good day off, then?" He raised an enquiring eyebrow.

Neela paused before answering. "Hmm, it was OK. I've had better." She couldn't keep up the serious tone and she burst out laughing at how crestfallen Ray looked. "Honestly, it was the best ever!"

"Me too." Ray stroked Neela's hair and neither of them minded that the glitter that had come off each other's bodies was making them glint and twinkle in the now-dusky light.


	7. Chapter 7

**Note:** I had added a note to the end of chapter 6 but I guess fanfic hadn't uploaded properly. For the glitter fans (you know you are mydoctortennant :p) there had to be a last appearance.

Humungous thank u to everyone who has enjoyed reading as much as I enjoyed writing and given their much-appreciated reviews.

I really don't know if that is the end of that particular story or if it might be continued in the future, it just seemed to be a natural end which everyone could then make up a sequel for how they might like things to progress for themselves.

In any case, I will endeavour to come up with more roomie fics. sprinkles glitter on everybody


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